Done deal: 49ers heading to face Falcons in Georgia Dome for NFC title

The 49ers’ path to Super Bowl XLVII must go through the Atlanta Falcons, who’ll host next Sunday’s NFC Championship Game.

The Falcons advanced to that matchup by outlasting the 49ers’ NFC West rival, the Seattle Seahawks, 30-28 Sunday in the Georgia Dome.

With the playoff seedings holding true, the No. 1 Falcons (14-3) and No. 2 49ers (12-4-1) will kick off at noon inAtlanta. The 49ers won their playoff opener Saturday night in 45-31 fashion against the Green Bay Packers, marking Candlestick Park’s finale this season.

History isn’t on the 49ers’ side for their upcoming trip. They’re 1-3 in NFC Championship Games away from San Francisco, with the lone victory coming by their 1988 team that won at Chicago before claiming Super Bowl XXIII.

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The 49ers have lost their five of their past six visits to the Georgia Dome. That lone win came in 2001 when Terrell Owens caught a game-winning touchdown pass in overtime.

Atlanta hosted their only previous playoff meeting with the 49ers, who fell 20-18 in a January 1999 divisional-round game. Garrison Hearst sustained a career-changing ankle injury on the game’s first snap, and Steve Young had three passes intercepted in his final career playoff game.

One aspect of Sunday’s matchup will pit a resurgent 49ers offense, led by playmaking quarterback Colin Kaepernick, against a Falcons defense coordinated by Mike Nolan, who served as the 49ers’ coach from 2005 until his dismissal seven games into the 2008 season. Nolan went 18-37 before being replaced by Mike Singletary.

In defeating the Seahawks, coach Mike Smith and quarterback Matt Ryan won their first playoff game in their Falcons tenure, having lost previous playoff openers in the 2008, 2010 and 2011 seasons.

But the Falcons blew a 20-0 halftime lead and needed a 49-yard field goal by Matt Bryant with eight seconds remaining to survive.

Division rivals before realignment in 2002, the 49ers lead the overall series 44-30-1 against the Falcons. However, the 49ers are 5-8 inside the Georgia Dome.

The 49ers are making their second straight appearance in the NFC Championship Game, having lost last year’s 20-17 in overtime to the visiting New York Giants. The last NFC team to reach back-to-back conference finals was the Philadelphia Eagles, from 2001-04.

Asked after Saturday’s win what he wants to see from his defense, 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh said: “We want to study for the test, (for) whoever that is that we’re playing, and have a great week of preparation. And then come out and compete like maniacs.

“This is that do-or-die, win-or-go-home kind of situation. Such a unique dynamic. So, we’ll do the things that we’ve always tried to do as a team and do them to the best of our God-given ability.”

Cam Inman

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What a day. For about 1 min it looked like Seahawks in a third rematch. Last time Niners played in Atlanta it was after a similar win at home vs. Green bay. Hearst got hurt on the first play and the game was over. Let’s. hope for a difft result

TheGhostofOak

If we play our game, I just can’t see the Falcons beating us.

My hope: 49ers/Ravens Superbowl – Epic battle for the ages filled with sub plots like Harbaugh vs Harbaugh and the HOF 52 passing the torch to the next HOF 52. It just doesn’t get any better.

This is our years fellas!

Deb

The really don’ t impress me at .They always blew big leads and are damm lucky to even be in the playoffs. If this is close they don’t have a chance . Look at the gem they just payed unreal. Well Sb here we one!! We play like we did against Green Bay we win . I don’t care bout the Georgia dome

Deb

Yep harbaugh against harbaugh I have been saying it all year. And we are getting closer. What a game that would be. We are talking about history here .

Can SF stop Turner with 6guys? We need Justin, but yeah. Can Willis go man on TE Gonzalez? All day. Can SF corners contain Jones &White with safeties over top? They’re not better than GB receivers. Can gold rush get to Matty Ice? Maybe, depends on Justin. Feels like Atl scores< 27 Can Kaep Gore & Crab score more than 28. yep

JJ

Couldn’t agree more ghost of oak !!!

Jack Hammer

They beat Chicago in Chicago on their way to Super Bowl XXIII, NOT XXII.

Boxergar

I can see Kaep having another great game. Hope that Justin Smith is able to play and Alden Smith needs to get back to sacks. I’m going to a Super Bowl party and it would be great if the Niners were in it.

snsf49loyal

Kaep is still learning with every game, he will eliminate his errors and will learn not to repeat them; he is a super athlete and has the explosiveness which 49ers lacked in past few years. They still have to play at a top level as a team, cannot let up now. GO NINERS!!

Really?

49ers have not been able to put together more than 2 consecutive wins all season long. Atlanta would be #3 if they win.

The only ones who will beat the 49ers are the 49ers. Atlanta is in uncharted territory. This team has not been to the NFC championship. The’re happy as hell just to have won their first playoff game.

Niners are a superior team. Keep the mistakes to a minimum and we will cruse through Atlanta.

http://Mercurynews Manuel

I agree loyal 49er, and I think we are going to get another ring.

mglt6710

MY hope would be for a Harbaugh brothers bowl, a SUPER BRO – WL!!

I just don’t see the Atlanta D being able to stop Kaep if he keeps playing as he did yesterday. The Atlanta D left the middle open all afternoon, which is how the Seachickens almost came back and beat them. BUT FOR that arrogant jerk Carroll playing cute and calling a Time Out just as Bryant set about to kick what would have been a field goal that would have been NO GOOD, the Seahawks would have won the game. And Bryant re-kicked, and now the Niners go to Hot-Lanta.

GO NINERS!!

Nobody

49ers’ offense is definitely good enough for Atlanta. Now, if the D will step up just a bit then 49ers will be in New Orleans.

The D has been in decline since the 2nd half of that NE game. They were less than average against AZ and only average against GB. The GB game was won by the offense while the D gave up 352 yards, 31 points and 6.3 yards per offensive play AT HOME against an unbalanced team without a running game. They will not win the Atlanta game playing like that.

All SB winners have had their D peak at the right time to win it all. SF will need to do the same or they will get beaten just like the Seahawks did.

MarkMaz

Nobody: The defense didn’t give up 31 points. The first 7 was given up by the offense on a pick-6 and the last 7 was in garbage time, well after the game was decided. So that’s giving up 17 points against the #4 scoring offense in the league, averaging 27.1 points per game. I’d say that was pretty good defense!

ajra21

Don’t underestate this Falcons team. The best record in the NFL means something. They have a very good home record under Smith. They might not have a great D or a running game as good as other teams but they’ve won games and we’ve lost to worse teams. We have been given a slight edge by the bookmakers and I think that is a mistake. The Falcons are at home and they will feel like favourites. Our guys must remember that they lost to the Rams and the Vikings, inside domes, because we didn’t respond the way they had to. This is a 50-50 game.

snsf49loyal

Atlanta had issues with Russel Wilson, IMHO – Kaep is better than RW. Let’s see how he plays. Like John Madden used to say: “This is why you play the game”.

Really?

49ers won in New Orleans. They know how to play in the dome. 49ers won in Green Bay and New England. They know how to play on the road. 49ers were in the NFC Championship last year. This Atlanta team hasn’t been to an NFC Championship game.

Atlanta is just happy to win a playoff game. 49ers are on a mission.

chunky

@ MarkMaz

Well done! A few other details that “Nobody” failed to acknowledge in his nit-picking:

1. Our D was physically and mentally weathered after their 90+ snap effort against the furious Patriots comeback (sans Justin Smith in the second half — see #2)

2. Justin Smith’s absence over the final 2.5 games of the regular season clearly illustrated how pivotal a role he plays in the strength of the team’s D — our front 7.

3. In allowing a paltry 6.4 YPA to the league’s reigning MVP, the Niners claimed the second of Rodgers’ three worst performances of the season, specific to the very telling YPA metric (4.7 YPA vs. SEA on 9/14 and 6.3 YPA vs. SF opening day). This, despite a compromised Justin Smith and Chris Culliver’s temporary second half exit (cramps).

The one worrisome part of the defensive effort yesterday was that DuJuan Harris averaged almost 5 YPC (11 carries, 53 yards). With the Niners touting a near 2:1 time of possession advantage and the game nip & tuck until the latter stages of the 3rd quarter, the Pack did themselves no favors going away from the run. We’ll need to effort better with the Meatball (AKA: Michael Turner) and ‘Quizz combining for one of their more effective ground games of the year yesterday.